Boston

A number of years ago, I went to Boston and invested a week at the Westin Hotel which is located at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. It was one of several conferences on spirituality and healing in medicine put on by the Harvard Medical School that I attended. HMS is really centered in the various major hospitals in downtown Boston. It was about the healing power of ministry. It was about the necessity for chaplains in medical facilities. It was about how chaplains and physicians can and should work together to prolong quality, human life.
Chaplains are first responders and are there until the last person - patient or medical professional - needs them. They are working right now in Boston to help people get through the crisis there.

The Irish Whitehouse, Dublin

A young traveler in Ireland

We were sitting on the dock at Dingle Harbor when a young man walked up and and asked us to take his picture. He was from the States and had come to Dingletown to run in their annual marathon. We talked about his run and why he traveled alone. It is interesting to me how many people do go as singles. They say it gives them more freedom and they do not have to compromise with someone else. I find it just the opposite. I need someone to share in the adventure. It does take compromise and sometimes I have to miss something in order to accommodate the other person(s) but they often show me things that I have missed. This is much like life itself.

Instant friends

I am a Rotarian. I have been part of this worldwide organization beginning in 1977, although I took three years off during a move.
I wear a Rotary pin and do so when traveling. People will see it and, especially if they are Rotarians, will comment. 
The picture above is of Trinity College in Dublin. As we walked in a young man - serving as greeter - saw my pin and started off on a conversation regarding Rotary's International Ambassadorial Scholarships. This is a program where we send postgraduate students overseas to share their experiences in another country.  The young man was hoping to travel to the U.S. to study at Georgetown.
He had been visiting the local Dublin Rotary Club in preparation for his application.
This is one way, one group, is working to make the world a smaller place; one of understanding and peace.

Advice: Always travel with someone you like

SFO

Buckingham Palace, London

ROME

Dolomite Alps

VENICE

CDG, Paris, France

Hill of TARA, Ireland

 

BOATS

On The Thames

On the Shannon

Venice Canal (garbage boat(

The Arno (Florence)

Bellagio (Lake Como)

 

Reflections on flying

As we like to go places that are often from 3,000 to 8,000 miles from home, we take airplanes. Planes have come a long way since I used to fly back and forth from SFO to LAX on Pacific Southwest Airlines (although I liked them).
In my opinion the good airlnes have gotten better and the bad ones worse. Now we see two not-so-good airlines merging so as to make a larger not-so-good airline. A couple of examples are Continental/United and USAir/American.
Most recently we have flown Aer Lingus both long haul and short and they were predictably fair. The best thing is that they fly air buses and I prefer their configurations. Their service is not great.
We also flew Alitalia (booked through Delta - it was supposed to be a Delta flight although Delta refused to honor mileage) and it was probably the worst flight we have had. It was not the food or service or inconveniences - it was all of that.
On the other hand, we flew Air France both long haul and short haul from Verona to CDG and then to SFO. It was good even in Economy although they fly 767's which I don't like as much.
Hands down - by the way - we fly`Alaska Airlines on shorter trips along the West Coast.
While I'll stick to Premium or Business, even Economy beats the train, car or walking. There is nothing like seeing the Rockies or Greenland from 40,000 feet.

Greenland - green?